Burner for incinerating cotton gin waste



Feb. 15,1955

`Filed April 20 195; I

C. rATTEBERRY BURNER FOR INCINERATING COTTON GIN WASTE 4 sheds-sheet 1 Vor/ Azeberry Feb. 15, 1955 y c. ATTEBERRY BURNER Foa INCINERATING coTToN Gm WASTE med Apri; 2o, 1s51 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. C`/0r/r A Heb evry AM/ff. WM

/l TTOR/VE Y Feb- 'l5-19.5.5 c. ATTEBERRY 2,702,013

BURNER FOR INCINERATING COTTON GIN WASTE A r rom/5y Feb. .15, 1955 c.. AT'r'EBvr-:RRY

BURNER FOR INCINERATNG COTTON GIN WASTE med m11 zo, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENToR. C/or/f A /eb erry A TTORNEY United States Patent O BURNER Fon INCINERATING co'rroNl 'GIN wAsTE Clark Atteberry, Mercedes, Tex. Application April 20, 1951, Sel'itllNO. 222,115

8 Claims. (Cl. 11o-18) This invention n relates generally to burners for the destruction of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse. An object of this `invention is to provide an improved burner especiallyadapted for the destruction of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse. AA further object is to provide an improved burner for the destruction of such refuse, the burner being characterized by the following:

'l. Provision for supplyingtheV fuel to thel lburner (through the bottom thereof (underfeed) therebyavoiding the smothering effects attending the overfeed provisions of conventional burr burners. l

2. 4Means for maintaining the tiring areas on the top of the fuel bedso that flames are at all times exposed to fresh air.

3. Means for causing ai'r to spiral upwardly throughout a major `portion of the'burner whereby the efficiency thereof is substantially increased.

l 4. Provision for supplying -fresh air continuously through and mixed with the entire fuel bed.

5. Means for maintaining uniform distribution of fuel y including the fuel supply means as well as the burner proper.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the device of Figure 1. Figure 3 lis a vertical section of the burner.

Figure 4 is a horizontal section of the base of'the -the line 5-'5 of Figure 4. Referring to the drawings in greater detail:

The'entire -burner unitmay conveniently be divided into two parts, namely the fuel conditioner and supplier and the burner proper.

The gin refuse conditioner' and supplier comprise a cyclone 1 communicating with a tumbler 2 through a swivel-type funnel 3 rotatably attached to the cyclone and a hopper 4 extending into the inlet end of the tumbler, the other end of the funnel and the hopper being unsecured.

The swivel-type funnel 3 is in the form of a scalene cone with the center of the two ends thereof offset from each other. Thev large end of the funnel is fitted to the bottom of the cyclone with slip rings 5 movable one within the other to permit the funnel to be rotated in order to permit the funnel to be placed in and out of register with the tumbler hopper 4, thus providing a convenient means of discontinuing as desired the flow of lrefuse to the burner and delivering the fuel instead to other receivers, e. g.v trucks.

The main purpose of the tumbler 2 is to remove sand i or flight 9, and a sand chute 10 providedwith a gate or valve 114 and access doors 12.` The rotary screen The chain of communication between the tumbler '1 and the burner proper is a hopper 15, two horizontal screw conveyors 16 and 17, and next a vertical screw conveyor 18, the longitudinal axes of said screw conveyors being in the same vertical plane.

In operation of the refuse-conditioner and supplier,

cotton burrs and gin trash pass through conduits (not shown) from the gin into the top of the cyclone 1 and next into the tumbler 2. In passing through the tumbler, sand is removed from the burrs and trash in order to improve the combustion properties thereof and at the same time to provide an ash residue free from sand and clinkers and therefore of high percentage potash analysis. The thus treated refuse passes into the hopper 15 at the mouth of the casing for conveyor screws Y16,117 and 18. Conveyor screw 16 picks up the refuse and conveys it to a point where it drops down onto the screw 17 which conveys it to the 'vertical screw 18 and thence into the burner.

No clogging difficulties have been encountered with this particular arrangement of conveyor screws. The non-clogging feature of this screw-conveyor assembly is attributed to the absence of conveyor hangers or bearings inside the conveyor housings where they would interfere withthe conveyance of the burrs to the burner. All bearings for this assembly are outside the conveyor housings, and screws 17 and 18 each are provided with two outboard bearingsin tandem arrangement to impart rigidity to the overhung relationship of the screws and to provide the non-clogging feature. The step-down arrangement of the conveyor screws 16 and 17 has two specific purposes. One purpose is to provide a block against backiiring" of the burrs into the conveyor screws andv other parts of the refuse supply system. Another purpose is to provide for the desirable over-hung arrangement for conveyor screw 17.

The burner proper may be roughly divided into aV iire brick'and clay 23. The hood is lined with heat resistant refractory clay 24 which extends upward a part of the way into the stack.

Refuse enters the burner at the bottom, passing into the retort 25 portion thereof. In the base of the retort and attached to the top of the shaft of the vertical screw 18 is a spreader bar 26 which rotates with said shaft. The ends of the bar are bent at an angle away from the direction of rotation of the bar so as to aid in spreading the fuel outwardly from the shaft into the retort.

Thus the retort is filled with fuel and at this stage fuel begins to roll over upon stationary air grates 27, these grates being more fully described hereinafter.

. Preferably primary ignition of the fuel occurs as it passes reaches a point where it spreads outwardly into burner bowl 28 and onto revolving grates 29 in the bottom thereof wherein combustion is substantially completed.

Grates 29 are built onto a carriage 30 and continuously revolve therewith throughout the operation of the burner. The carriage includes a plurality of roller castsuitable access door 7, rotary screen 8, a spiraling strip ers 31' which travel'on a circular track 32. Agitators 33 are attached to and revolve with the carriage and serve the purposes of continuously stirring the burning fuel, pre- Patented Feb. 15, 1955 venting'the'airgrates 27 from clogging and aiding the movement'of the combustion residue (primarily ashes) togrid th'rughtherevolving grates into the circular ash pitVA Ashl scoops' 35' are attached to the underside of the grate" carriageso that as the'carriage revolves the scoops move thrdughthe' ash pit, moving the ashes continuously into the stack 21. A float valve 54 attached to the inlet toward the opening 36 in the bottom thereof. The ashes pass thrugh'this opening into ash chute 37 and thence to the ground 'orinto a suitable conveyor system or recepta'cle outside the burner.

Both forcedV airand air fiowing by gravity are utilized ipracticingthis invention'. The path or pattern which the airis caused to establish as it passes through the burner is one of the important aspects of this invention. This pattern is such' that throughout a major portion of the burier'the air isv continuously traveling upwardly ina spiral or swirling manner. Important factors are the angle at which the-air enters the burner and the direction of air tfavel'twithrespct to the rotation of theburner elements iu'sidetthe' burner.

flanv 38; driven by an electric motor 39 or other means, forces air throigha conduit 40 connected to the exhaust openingv of the fan.` Air conduit 40 branches at 41" into conduits 42' and 43. Branch conduit 42 is a primaryforced'air'tube which carries forced air from the fan to al tuyre 44'. Tuy`re44 is a circular chamber attached to the bottoni of the burner, and the conduit 42 communidates therewith through a port 42', as shown in Fig. 4. Forced air passes from said tuyre through the air-grates 27 into` the retort 25 and also through the circular opening` 45 over; `the revolving grate 29 and into the burner bowl l28.v The air g`rates27 are tilted or inclined so as to imparti-av swirling` upward movement to the air passing therethrugh'into the burner. The arrangement of the opening 45"-i's such that it is in harmony with suchmovel menu Branch conduit 46 isa secondary forcedl air tube which extends from the branch point 41 to and around the jacket `220i the'cnibustjion chamber 19 and communicates with thepor't's 47 which pass through the wall of the combustion chamber and open' thereinto along a direction forming ari' argle'betv'v'een zero and 90 degrees, both exclusive, with theta" t to the chamber at the point of entry thereirit, hereinafter (including the claims) referred to as tangentially'." By this means `forced secondary air is suppliedv to'. the combustion chamber.

Natural draft secondary air ports 48 allow outside air to flow byg'ravity irito the combustion chamber, and, like the ports 47, open ta'ngentially thereinto at an angle designed ,to impart a spiral upward movement of natural draft air 'in the burner.

From the foregoingv the following will be seen: The direction of entry of air into the combustion chamber through the stationary 'air grates, the forced air ports, and the' gravity air ports, and the design and direction of rotation of moving'p'arts inside the combustion chamber all harmonize in producing and maintaining a spiral upward movement of air throughout a major .portion of the entire burner, including the vcombustion 'chamber 19, hood 201ga`nd stack 21.

The arrangement described above inherently provides a relatively low pressure area above the retort 25. Conseqiletly, air borne particles of the gin refuse are pulled to the cef'tr ofthe chamber 19 and fall under the inuen'ceof gravity toward the retort and burner bowl, while the upwardly spiraling air hugs the respective walls `ofthe `c''o'rribl'lstion chamber, hood and stack. Heavier particlesof `refuse,'on which centrifugal force has a substantial effect, are thrown against vthe combustion chamber Wall moreover, which retards their progress toward the stac If desired there may be provided in the stack a water isprinkler' unit comprising spray nozzles 49 and water sup- `ply pipe l50. If the pressure ofthe available water supply Ia steam 'generator comprising, e. g. a pipe 51 passing through the combustion chamber along its diameter and communicating with a-steam dome 52 and thence a dis- "eharge or vent pipe 53 which leads the generated steam its pressure of generation being forced up and out into the stack to quench sparks and to lessen the amount of carbon discharged by the stack.

Burners are subjected to conditions which cause considerable expansion and contraction of the materials of construction thereof and if this is not taken into account in designing and constructing the burners serious damage is likely to result from severe buckling and warping. Various means are well known in the art for avoiding this difficulty and will not be disclosed herein.

While the driving mechanisms for operating the moving parts of the burner are conventional, for the` sake of completeness most of them are shown in the drawings and therefore will now` be described in general. other types of driving mechanisms may be employed.

The main drive shaft 56 is fitted with V-belt pulley 57 which is the driven member of speedreduction assembly 58. Pulley 59 is the driving member of the speed reduction assembly 58 and also of power transmission assembly 60 which drives the fan 38.

Power transmission assembly 61 transmits the driving power from main drive shaft 56 to the revolving tumbler 2. Driving assembly 62 transmits power from main drive shaft 56 to line shaft 63. Driving assembly 64-transmits power from the line shaft 63 to the horizontal screw conveyor 16. Driving assembly 65 transmits power from the line shaft 63 to the shaft 63' of the horizontal screw conveyor 17. Two outboard bearings 63 are provided for the drive end of the shaft 63', providing a cantilever type shaft mounting. Driving assembly 66 transmits power from the line shaft 63 to shaft 67 which is fitted with a set of angle drive gears 68 at each end thereof. These gears transmit power to the vertical shafts 69, to the upper ends of which are fitted two spur gears 70 which transmit power to circular rack gear 71 attached to the perimeter of the grate carriage 30 and thus provides for the rotation of the revolving grates 29.

A vertical stub shaft 72 extends through the entire length of the vertical screw conveyor 18 and through two outboard bearings 73 properly spaced to provide rigid over-hung mounting of the screw 18. The vertical stub shaft 72 is fitted at its bottom end with angle gear 74 which meshes with a similar angular gear 75 on the line shaft 63 to provide a right angle power transmission for the vertical screw conveyor 18.

The tumbler 2 is rotated by a belt drive or other suitable drive and is mounted on rollers at each end which run on circular tracks attached to each end of the tumbler (none of these being shown).

The terms horizontal," vertical and the like are used herein with respect to the burner in its normal position of use as shown in the drawings.

As many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention may be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments thereof except as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. In a burner construction of the character described, a combustion chamber having an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort and a burner bowl in communication with the base of the combustion chamber. a grate in the burner bowl rotatable about a vertical axis substantially coincidental withthe vertical axis of said combustion chamber, a xed grate in the retort, said fixed grate defining inclined openings directed inwardly and tangentially of the combustion chamber in the direction of rotation of said rotatable grates, means for supplying refuse into the combustion chamber, a circumferential group of tuyeres in the lower portion of the combustion chamber for admitting secondary air -by gravity thereinto, a circumferential group of tuyeres similarly situated in the combustion chamber for supplying secondary forced air thereinto, each of said tuyeres passing through the walls of said combustion chamber and opening tangentially therein in the same direction above but adjacent said grates and in the direction of rotation of said rotatable grate, whereby the air spirals upwardly throughout a major portion of the burner,` and means beneath the .com-

Of course,

` into through said fixed grat 2. ln a burner construction of the character described, ,j

a combustion chamber having an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort and a burner bowl in communication with the. base ofthe combustion chamber, a grate in the burner bowl rotatable about a vertical axis substantially coincidental with the vertical axis of -said combustion chamber, a plurality of fixed grates in the retort, said fixed grates defining inclined openings directed inwardly andtangentially of the combustion chamber in the direction of rotation of the rotatable grate, means for supplying refuse into the combustion chamber, a circumferential group of tuyeres in the lower portion of the combustion chamber for supplying secondary forced air thereinto, each of said tuyeres passing through the walls of said combustion chamber and opening tangentially therein in the same direction above but adjacent said grates and in the direction of rotation of said rotatable grate, and a tuyere beneath the combustion chamber for supplying primary forced air thereinto through said xed grates and over said rotatable grate, whereby the air spirals upwardly throughout a major portion of the burner.

3. In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs andl other cotton gin refuse; a combustion chamber having -aii outlet adjacent its upper end, a refuse receiver in communication with the base of said combustion chamber, said refuse receiver having a grate rotatable about a substantially vertical axis, said grate axis being substantially coincidental with the axis of said combustion chamber, refuse supply meansfor said receiver, and air supply means including a tuyere opening tangentially in the combustion chamber wall supplying air at the periphery thereof above but adjacent saidv grate and in the direction of rotation of said grate whereby the air spirals upwardlythroughout the major portion of the burner.

4.A In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs and other cotton' gin refuse, aV combustion chamber provided with an outlet adjacent its `upper enda refuse receiver in communication with the base of said combustion chamber, said refuse receiver having a grate rotatable about a substantiallyverticaLaxis, said grate axis being substantially coincidental with the axis of said combustion chamber, refuse supply means below said'refuse receiver, air supply means including a fan for supplyingair under pressure into .the combustion chamber, said air supply meansincluding a plurality of circumferentially spaced tuyeres in the wall of the combustion chamber opening l tangentially thereto above but adjacent said grate and in the direction of rotation of said grate whereby the air supplied spirals upwardly along the periphery of the combustion chamber.

5. In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse, a combustion chamber having an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort and a burner bowl in communication with the base of said combustion chamber, said burner bowl having a grate rotatable about a vertical axis, said grate laxis being substantially coincidental with theaxis of said combustion'chamber, said retortk having a fixed grate defining inclined openings directed inwardly and tangentially of the combustion chamber in the direction of rotation of said rotatable grate, means'for supplying air through said fixed grate, refuse supply means below said retort, and secondary air supply means for the combustion chamber including a circumferential group of tuyeres in the wall of said chamber above but adjacent said grates and opening tangentially to said wall and in the direction of rotation of saidrotatable grate, whereby said air supply means through said xed grate and said secondary air supply means together provide a column of air upwardly spiraling around a low pressure area above said retort and burner bowl.

6.4 In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse, a combustion chamber having an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort in communication with the base of said combustion chamber,

a plurality of fixed grates in said retort, said fixed grates I defining inclined openings directed` inwardly and tangentially of the combustion chamber, means below said retort for supplying refuse thereto, a refuse spreader bar in said retort rotatable about a substantially vertical axis substantially coincidental With the vertical axis of said combustion chamber, a revolving agitator bar extending above said fixed grates and continuously mov ing across their surface during operation of the burner, said agitator bar moving in the direction of rotation of said spreader bar and in the direction of the inclined openings defined by said fixed grate, and a tuyere beneath the combustion chamber supplying primary forced air thereinto through said fixed grates, whereby the passages in said fixed grates are continuously cleared of refuse.

7. In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse, a combustion chamber having an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort and a burner bowl in communication with the base of the combustion chamber, a grate in the burner bowl rotatable about a substantially vertical axis, said grate axis being substantially coincidental with the axis of said combustion chamber, an agitator member attached to said rotatable grate, a fixed grate in the retort deliriing inclined openings directed inwardly and tangentially of the c ombustion chamber, means below said retort for .supplying fuel thereinto, said agitator member extending above and over saidixed grate for movement across its surface during rotation of said rotatable grate, and a tuy re beneath the combustion chamber for supplying primary forced air thereinto through said fixed grate, whereby the passages through said fixed grate are continuously cleared of refuse.

8. In a burner for the incineration of cotton burrs and other cotton gin refuse, a combustion chamber hav ing an outlet adjacent its upper end, a retort and a burner bowl in communication with the base of said combustion chamber, a grate in the burner bowl rotatable about a substantially vertical axis, saidv grate axisv being substantially coincidental with the axis of said combustion chamber, a fixed grate in the retortdefining inclined openings directed inwardly and tangentially of the combustion chamber in the direction of rotation of the rotatable grate, means below said retort for'supplying fuel into the combustion chamber, ash removal vmeans including a scoop member attached to the under- 4 side of said rotatable grate for continuously removing ashes from said bumer during its operation, said ash removal means further including a circular channel below said rotatable grate and having an opening foi' the gravity discharge of ashes, an agitator member car-v ried by said rotatable grate extending above said fixed grate for movement across its surface during rotation of said.rotatable grate, and a tuyre beneath the com- ,.bustion chamber for supplying primary forced air thereinto through said fixed grate, whereby the inclined openings of said fixed grate direct air in an outward direction from the center of said retort and substan tially tangential to and in the same direction as the rotation of said rotatable grate `and said agitator member to movecontinuously said refuse outwardly from s aid fixed grate toward said burner bowl during operation of said burner.

References Cited in the file of this patent ,y UNITED 'STATES PATENTS 155,465 

